Safety and tolerability concerns accompanying the use of live-attenuated vaccines in young, aged, and immunocompromised populations which has led to testing the feasibility of vaccines composed of pathogenic antigen subunits, e.g., proteins that makeup the envelope or matrix of virus particles. Subunit-based vaccines lack some of the inherent innate immune stimulatory properties of whole organism-based vaccines. Multiple immunizations or the use of adjuvants may become necessary to produce memory cells after vaccination. While adjuvant approaches can successfully induce protection for some vaccines, they are not universally effective. Thus, finding improved vaccination methods that have the potential to reduce the burden of re-vaccination with enhance vaccine efficacy are needed.
Pollack et al. report epidermal growth factor receptor inhibition augments the expression of MHC class I and II genes. Clin Cancer Res, 2011, 17(13):4400-13. See also Pollack, Oncoimmunology, 2012, 1(1):71-74.
Mascia et al. report the blockade of the EGF receptor induces a deranged chemokine expression in keratinocytes leading to enhanced skin inflammation. Am J Pathol, 2003, 163:303-12. See also Guttman-Yassky et al., Eur J Cancer, 2010, 46:2010-9 and Zaiss et al., Immunity, 2013, 38:275-84. Pastore et al. report ERK1/2 regulates epidermal chemokine expression and skin inflammation. J Immunol, 2005, 174:5047-56
Koutsonanos et al. report the delivery of subunit influenza vaccine to skin with microneedles improves immunogenicity and long-lived protection. Sci Rep, 2012, 2:357. See also Pulit-Penaloza et al., Sci Rep, 2014, 4:6094.
References cited herein are not an admission of prior art.